But Bennell would ‘play fight’ with the boys, the court was told, and play a game called Follow Me, where they would mirror his actions, with increasing levels of intimacy, so he could gauge whether they would be compliant to abuse.

At night, he would play music to disguise the sound of abuse, Mr Johnson said.

The prosecutor described how the father of an alleged victim confronted Bennell, who denied the rumours about his conduct.

Mr Johnson added: ‘As with so many other parents he is wracked with guilt about the fact that he effectively facilitated the abuse of his own son by letting him stay again and again.’

Bennell admitted to police that he was attracted to 13-year-old boys because they were ‘pedigree footballers who were athletic and good looking’.